General description
This course provides basic and detailed information about different natural ecosystems such as land, water, coastal and marine ecosystems, their structure and importance in providing natural resources that human being are using in life. In addition, the course provides a detailed information on basic cycles as water, mineral, energy, and biological cycles, as well as interrelations between all cycles and human being.
The course contains five chapters:
1- Natural Resources & Ecosystems: This chapter explains the idea of Development of ecosystem concept and description of interlinkages between ecosystems and provision of natural resources and life, description of water, Minerals and Energy cycles, description of biological cycle and interlinkages between different cycles and human being.
2- Coastal Ecosystems: This chapter describes coastal ecosystems from water surface until sediments, reefs and its fauna and flora, and interlinkages with human being and other ecosystems.
3- Marine Ecosystems: Describes non-coastal marine systems, the water column, sediments, fauna and flora and interlinkages with human being and other ecosystems.
4- Land Ecosystems: Describes land ecosystems from soil to plants and forests and interlinkages with human being and other ecosystems.
5- Terrestrial water Ecosystems: Describes water ecosystems from rivers to lakes and wet land, and interlinkages with human being and other ecosystems.